Improvement in the manufacture of fuel from coal dust or slack



UNIT D STATES ATEN OFFICE.

HQRATIO M. SMITH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE HALF HIS RIGHTTO NELSON G. GRIDLEY AND FRANCIS F. WARNER, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FUEL FROM COAL DUST 0R SLACK.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 131,794, dated October1,1872.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, HORATIO M. SMITH, of the city of Chicago, county of(look and State of Illinois, have discovered a new, useful, and ImprovedProcess for Rendering Goal Dust and Slack useful and merchantable as aFuel for general purposes; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable othersskilled in the art to which my invention appertains to use the same.

I am aware that coal dust and slack have been rendered useful as a fuelby concreting its particles into masses of various sizes, and this hasbeen done by rendering the particles adhesive by mixing suitablesubstances with them. The masses so formed areat first plastic, and thenallowed to set or harden naturally, or are hardened by artificial means.Some of the objectionable features in said process-are, that the plasticmasses cannot be compactly laid together during the process of hardeningwithout danger of amalgamation, and the completed product of the processis too readily disintegrable during transportation.-

My invention relates to the process above referred to, Without regard tothose details which may be varied without eliminating the plasticandcohesive conditions essential'to my discovery; and it consists inpermanently incasing a concreted. and plastic mass of coal dust andslack, either or both, in a readily combustible case or covering. 7

In my improved process I first prepare coal dust and slack, either orboth, in a concreted and plastic mass, by any suitable an'd'knowu means,and then firmly and permanently pack the same within cases, preferablycylindrical in form and open at both ends, and of various dimensions,made of any suitable and readily combustible fabric, or other suitableand com- .bustible material, with or Without being im- .integrationduring transportation, and thereby rendering it useful and merchantableas a fuel for general purposes. Additional advantages of my improvedprocess are, that the casing tends to prevent amalgamation of the massesduring combustion, renders it useful for domestic purposes, assists inkindling the coal, and admits of beinghandled with greater cleanliness.

Having thus described the nature and object of my discovery orinvention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

1. The process of rendering coal dust and slack, either or both, usefuland inerchantable as a fuel by packing and permanently incasingconcreted and plastic particles thereof in readily combustible cases,substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. As a new article of manufacture, concreted particles of coal dust andslack, either or both, inca'sed in readily combustible cases,substantially as described.

HORATIO M. SMITH.

